Here is a very unique lesson that I had a lot of fun creating because it is based on the dragon. Dragons have a lot of versatility to them whenever you come up with a new concept. There is a ton of ways you can draw dragons and one of those ways is how you see it here now. I have to believe that what I have created for you today is what a lot of you dragon drawers love creating.

How to Draw a Dragon Life Cycle, Aging Dragon, Dragon Aging Process

STEP 1.

This is a sketch of how the dragon transforms from a baby to toddler. As you can see once the dragon gets to a toddler age, the detailing and definition becomes more prominent. Notice how the horse and the facial features are softer at the hatching stage of the dragon. As we progress to the 2nd stage, the dragon becomes much more defined with noticeably growth in the horns and wings.

STEP 2.

Here is a sketch of how the dragon goes from a juvenile to adult hood. When it has grown to full size, that is when the aging process begins as far as the wrinkles, loose skin, and tattered teeth, horns, and frills. The claws, teeth and horns become yellow with age as well. Let's examine how the wings are torn in some areas to show that this dragon has been through struggling battles. The more wear and tear/scars you put on your dragon, the older and aggressive it will look. Notice how the detailing for the full grown dragon are much more defined than the juvenile. This is best to include in your work in order to create a successful looking age process for your characters.

STEP 3.

Here is a drawing of how the dragons look in a row as a life cycle state. As you can see detailing, definition and shading becomes more intense. Now let's move to the drawing steps to begin sketching out our dragon.

STEP 4.

Since I know there is a lot of dragon fans out there I wanted to make an easy one sheet lesson on drawing the baby dragon. Start with a circle for the head guide, then make the body's line of motion. You will use that circle to begin sketching out the dragon head shape like so, followed by the snout, neck, back and some of the wings. Once complete with that task, draw in the rest of the baby dragon's body by sketching out the legs, tail, feet, and arm. You will also need to add some skin texture detailing on the face, as well as draw out the eyeball. Lastly, draw the other foot, then add more spots.

STEP 5.

Now let's get down to drawing out the full sized dragon. Begin with a small shape for the head, then another oblong shape for the body. You will add the lining for the neck and wing like so.

STEP 6.

Here you will begin drawing out the muzzle of the dragon as well as the top of the head, horns, and short spikes on the forehead. The bottom jaw and chin have a nice sharp form as you can see here.

STEP 7.

Before you detail the face and head, you need to draw out the first front leg as well as the clawed foot. Sketch out the muscular wing arm and be sure to draw in all the detailing and muscle definition too. Lastly for this step sketch out the other horn, as well as the eye, nostrils, and some of the spikes on the cheek.

STEP 8.

Believe it or not, but you are almost done with this tutorial. All you need to do now is draw out the other front leg, followed by the back thigh, leg and foot. Draw in the clawed nails, then take your time as you sketch out the skin definition. Th3ere is a small rock or cliff that this giant dragon is clinging to, draw that in as well as the tree below him.

STEP 9.

Now you can draw the long flowing tail which cups his body like a dog's tail would when they are in a sit or lay pose. Draw the spikes that flow down the tail, then add the neck scales too.

STEP 10.

For the last step, you will need to first draw out the sharp cone shaped frills on the back of the neck. Once that is done take your time sketching out the skin based wings which should look large enough to hold such a gigantic sized dragon in the air as it flies. Erase your mistakes then you are all done.

STEP 11.

The sketched image should come out looking like the one you see here. Color in the dragon, and you're all done.

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